Brick  Church  Institute 


Rochester,  N.  Y. 

* 

REPORT 

OF  THE  SUPERINTENDENT 
FOR  THE  YEAR  1913-U4 


ANOTHER  YEAR’S  WORK  IN  THE  INSTITUTE 

Superintendent’s  Report  for  1913-1914 


With  the  first  of  June  the  fiscal  year 
and  also  the  round  of  the  season’s  activ- 
ities in  the  Institute  comes  to  a close.  As 
we  look  back  over  the  record  there  are 
many  things  for  which  to  be  profoundly 
grateful.  Financially,  it  has  been  a hard 
winter  for  almost  everyone  and  although 
this  fact  has  not  prevented  our  friends 
from  contributing  the  usual  amount  to 


get  for  the  current  year.  In  spite  of  all 
these  facts,  through  careful  economy,  and 
increases  in  some  items  of  income,  we  are 
able  to  close  the  year  with  all  hills  paid 
and  a balance  in  the  treasury  which,  al- 
though smaller  than  last  year’s,  is  never- 
theless encouraging. 

Our  blessings  are  not  all  financial  and 
material,  however.  Many  features  of  the 


A GOOD  EQUIPMENT  (THE  BUILDINGS) 


x the  support  of  the  work,  it  did  undoubt- 
N edly  operate  to  reduce  somewhat  the  busi- 
ness receipts  for  some  of  the  privileges. 
It  has  also  been  a severe  winter  in  point 
of  temperature  and  that  fact  is  registered 
in  the  addition  to  our  coal  bill  of  nearly 
$500.  During  the  year  we  have  also  made 
some  important  changes  and  additions  to 
our  equipment  which,  while  they  will  re- 
sult in  ultimate  economies,  have  none  the 
less  increased  the  sum  total  of  our  bud- 


work  have  shown  progress  in  effective- 
ness and  the  contribution  made  by  the  In- 
stitute It.o  the  total  work  of  the  church  and 
Sunday  School  has  been  eminently  worth 
while.  The  details  of  this  contribution 
will  appear  in  the  story  of  the  year’s 
work. 

THE  SUMMER  SCHOOL.  To  \ begin 
with  the  item  that  comes  earliest  ill  point 
of  time,  our  Summer  School  for  ths  sea- 
son of  1913-14  was  decidedly  the  most 


successful,  in  point  of  numbers  served 
and  efficiency  of  that  service,  that  we 
have  yet  had.  The  school  opened  on  cir- 
cus day,  but  in  spite  of  the  outside  attrac- 
tions the  first  day’s  enrollment  showed 
that  our  capacity  was  to  be  tested  to  the 
limit.  The  kindergarten  children  found 
Miss  Harriet  Jones  and  Miss  Jessie  Kirk 
ready  to  receive  them  with  an  interesting 
and  helpful  program  of  kindergarten  ac- 
tivities. Miss  Bessie  Walbridge  was  in 
charge  of  the  older  girls,  and  it  soon  be- 
came evident  that  we  must  either  employ 
an  additional  teacher  for  this  group  or 
turn  away  many  of  those  who  applied. 


phasis  placed  upon  the  making  of  articles 
that  would  be  useful  in  the  home.  A 
good  picture  was  given  to  each  boy  who 
made  a creditable  frame  for  it,  and  sev- 
eral homes  are  now  beautified  by  really 
good  copies  of  artistic  masterpieces  as  a 
result. 

The  serious  work  was  varied  by  outings 
to  the  parks  and  woods,  games  in  the 
gymnasium,  swimming,  and  the  daily 
luncheon  which  meant  nourishment  for 
many  who  sorely  needed  it.  The  wood- 
work was  in  charge  of  Mr.  L.  W.  Corbin 
of  Mechanics  Institute,  and  the  basketry 
was  taught  by  Miss  Mildred  Mason.  The 


g^ 

..  . 






sKlilil  X 4 

lipl 

> tf  V pis*  ■ 

W 

L 

-a  1 ** 

i- 

Hr  iPfe jr  "MS#1  ™ 

J'C  < 

;*•  i f 

Wm  . Wlf 

TK  > JjB  „ fK  v f 

ik  ££ 

a WEnm  n 

A BOYS  CLUB  MEETING 


Miss  Marian  Palmer  was  accordingly  en- 
gaged for  this  purpose.  The  work  of  this 
group  centered  about  the  idea  of  home- 
making and  the  girls  were  taught  various 
housewifery  arts,  such  as  cleaning,  bed- 
making, cooking,  sewing  and  the  like. 
Valuable  volunteer  assistance  was  con- 
tributed by  Mrs.  H.  E.  Johnston,  Miss 
Mary  Hallock,  Miss  Dorothy  Renwick, 
Miss  Florence  Dixon,  Miss  Catherine 
Pratt,  Misses  Pauline  and  Elizabeth  Stahl- 
brodt,  ihid  Messrs.  R.  A.  Hall  and  Colba 
GuckerJ 

The  /older  boys  were  under  the  charge 
of  MrJ  Gates  and  Mr.  Benjamin  Root  and 
their  /work  centered  largely  in  the  carpen- 
try and  basketry  classes  with  special  em- 


work  of  all  the  teachers  was  excellent, 
and  the  closing  entertainment  and  exhibi- 
tion aroused  much  interest  on  the  part  of 
many  parents  and  friends  who  expressed 
high  appreciation  of  what  the  school  was 
doing  for  their  children.  The  full  ac- 
count of  the  school  for  this  year  was  given 
in  the  August  number  of  “Brick  Church 
Life.” 

REPAIRS  AND  RENOVATION.  The 
summer  period  was  marked  by  the  usual 
work  of  renovation  and  repairs,  it  being 
the  constant  policy  of  the  Directors  to 
keep  the  building  and  equipment  in  good 
order  and  prevent  deterioration.  The 
major  items  in  this  account  are  for  clean- 
ing and  painting  rooms,  painting  the 


wood-work  and  walls  of  the  courts  and 
light  shafts,  and  the  replacing  of  wornout 
linen.  To  this  latter  item  especially  Mr. 
Hamlin  and  the  ladies  of  the  House  Com- 
mittee gave  careful  attention  and  the  pur- 
chasing was  done  with  judgment  and 
economy. 

Repairs  on  the  concrete  and  ironwork 
in  the  swimming  pool  cost  about  $100 


enjoyed  the  privileges  of  various  classes 
under  skilled  leadership,  as  follows: 
Gymnasium,  Miss  Ethel  Manchester,  as- 
sisted by  Miss  Hungad;  Dramatics,  Miss 
Florence  Colebrook;  Piano,  Miss  Ella 
Klein;  Sewing,  Mrs.  Leonard  Vandevate, 
assisted  by  Misses  Taylor  and  Snyder; 
Basketry,  Miss  Ruth  Molloy;  Millinery, 
Miss  Karr;  Cooking,  Miss  Seymour.  The 


AT  THE  WEDNESDAY  EVENING  SUPPER 


and  we  also  made  the  very  important  ad- 
dition of  a filtration  system  for  our  pool 
at  a cost  of  a little  more  than  $450.  This 
has  not  only  resulted  in  giving  us  a 
cleaner  pool  but  will  eventually  pay  for 
itself  in  reduced  cost  of  operation. 

With  the  beginning  of  October  the  Fall 
and  Winter  activities  resumed  their  sway 
and  we  were  soon  in  the  condition  ex- 
pressed by  one  of  our  young  men  in  the 
words:  “Something  doing  every  minute.” 
It  will  be  more  interesting  if  we  tell  the 
story  of  these  activities  under  the  heads 
of  the  groups  served,  and  reserve  sum- 
maries of  statistics  to  the  last. 

GIRLS  WORK.  The  most  prominent 
item  under  this  head  is  the  work  of  our 
Girls  Club  which  has  continued  its  inter- 
esting and  helpful  course  during  the  past 
year.  The  year  opened  with  a much  in- 
creased enrollment.  The  numbers  were 
too  large,  in  fact,  for  efficient  work  and 
this  difficulty  partly  remedied  itself  in  the 
falling  off  of  some  who  could  not  be 
taken  care  of.  The  total  attendance  for 
the  year’s  sessions  was  2,001.  These  girls 


attendance  records  were  kept  by  Miss 
Alice  Wahl  and  Miss  Mildred  Cranshaw. 
All  this  service  was  entirely  volunteer 
with  the  exception  of  the  basketry  in- 
struction, and  that  service  was  given  at  a 
very  moderate  rate. 

Suppers  were  served  to  those  girls  liv- 
ing at  a distance  and  thus  unable  to  go 
home  and  return  in  time  for  the  classes. 
This  was  in  charge  of  a committee  direct- 
ed by  Mrs.  John  B.  Frey  and  Miss  Minnie 
Smith. 

A feature  of  the  year’s  work  has  been 
the  efficient  personal  work  done  in  the 
interest  of  individual  girls,  the  committee 
on  this  being  composed  of  Miss  Borchard, 
Miss  Badger,  Mrs.  Fred  A.  Smith,  Miss 
Rogers,  Miss  Kathryn  Wetmore,  Miss 
Stillman,  Mrs.  P.  Romig,  Mrs.  Collins, 
Miss  Kirk,  and  Miss  Bristol. 

In  addition  to  the  various  classes  men- 
tioned the  activities  of  the  club  have  in- 
cluded social  parties,  plays,  outings  for 
nature  study,  helping  girls  to  find  work, 
counsel  and  advice  of  all  sorts. 


In  addition  to  the  splendid  work  of 
the  chairman  of  the  Girls  Work  Commit- 
tee, Mrs.  Theodore  D.  Steinhausen,  whose 
energy  and  enthusiasm,  and  rare  sympa- 
thetic insight  into  the  needs  and  interests 
of  the  girls,  have  been  an  inspiration  to 
everyone;  special  mention  should  be  made 
of  the  service  of  Miss  Manchester,  who 
has  been  at  the  head  of  the  gymnasium 
work  from  the  beginning.  Although  in 
ill  health  during  the  entire  year,  she  con- 
tinued her  unselfish  service  here  at  times 
when  the  effort  was  at  high  personal  cost, 
until  at  last  she  was  obliged  to  give  up  all 


her  work  and  go  home  for  an  operation, 
from  which  she  is  now  recovering.  Her 
quiet  and  uncomplaining  devotion  to  her 
work,  under  the  conditions  which  few 
suspected  because  of  her  courage,  was 
nothing  short  of  heroic.  The  Institute  is 
under  a debt  of  great  gratitude  and  we 
earnestly  pray  for  her  complete  recovery 
and  many  years  of  happy  and  efficient 
service. 

During  the  coming  summer  thirty-four 
girls  will  be  entitled  to  the  privilege  of  the 
summer  vacation  house  of  the  Y.  W.  C.  A. 
at  Sea  Breeze,  for  a week’s  outing,  this 
privilege  having  been  earned  by  regular 
attendance  and  loyalty  to  the  work  of  the 
club. 


Another  feature  of  our  work  with  girls 
which  is  gaining  ground  is  that  of  the 
Camp  Fire  Girls.  We  have  two  camp- 
fii  'es  that  are  connected  with  Brick 
Church,  the  Otetiana,  under  the  guardian- 
ship of  Miss  Mary  Moulthrop,  and  the 
Skanadario,  under  the  guardianship  of 
Miss  Eleanor  Ament,  with  Miss  Borchard 
as  assistant.  The  work  of  this  organiza- 
tion is  similar  to  that  of  the  Boy  Scouts 
of  America,  with  such  variations  as  adapt 
it  to  the  needs  and  interests  of  girls. 

These  girls  are  receiving  most  valuable 
training  in  various  useful  arts  as  well  as 


being  encouraged  in  physical  exercise  and 
out-door  life.  Applications  are  being  re- 
ceived for  membership  in  another  camp 
of  younger  girls  which  we  hope  to  see 
organized  in  the  Fall. 

BOYS  WORK.  The  most  significant 
feature  in  our  Boys  Work  this  year  has 
been  the  marked  increase  in  the  use  of 
our  privileges  and  participation  in  ath- 
letic events  by  the  hoys  of  our  Sunday 
School,  with  a very  helpful  influence  upon 
their  interest  in  that  part  of  our  general 
church  work.  As  will  be  seen  by  the  fig- 
ures given  at  the  close  of  this  report,  the 
attendance  at  gymnasium  classes  on  the 
part  of  the  boys  has  doubled  and  the  par- 
ticipation in  athletic  events  almost  trebled 


THE  SCOUT  PLAY— MOTHER  RECEIVES  A TELEGRAM 


as  compared  with  last  year.  This  encour- 
aging result  is  due  to  the  energy  and  skill 
of  Mr.  McKinney  in  winning  the  interest 
and  confidence  of  the  boys,  and  there 
have  been  many  expressions  of  apprecia- 
tion and  confidence  on  the  part  of  parents. 
Mr.  McKinney  has  made  a most  valuable 
contribution  to  the  sum  total  of  our  year’s 
work  at  this  one  point  alone.  His 
Wednesday  afternoon  and  Saturday 
morning  classes  with  the  younger  hoys 
have  been  scenes  of  busy  and  happy  ac- 
tivity and  the  boys  have  been  the  gainers 
thereby.  The  value  of  this  work  is  not 
to  be  lightly  estimated  and  will  not  be  by 
anyone  who  appreciates  first,  the  import- 


1N  THE  PARK 


ance  of  sound  bodily  health  in  the  forma- 
tion of  moral  character  and,  second,  the 
importance  of  having  the  boy  attracted  to 
the  church  as  a place  where  he  may  find 
provision  for  clean  sport  and  fair  play. 

In  the  work  of  the  Boys  Clubs  the  year 
has  shown  a no  less  encouraging  advance, 
the  attendance  having  increased  from 
2,765  last  year  to  4,372  for  this  season. 
Of  even  more  importance  than  mere  at- 
tendance is  the  closer  relation  between 
leaders  and  boys,  the  informal  and  con- 
fidential talks  on  matters  of  personal  con- 


duct, and  the  greatly  increased  spirit  of 
group  loyalty  and  mutual  helpfulness. 
One  of  the  best  illustrations  of  this  has 
been  mentioned  in  a previous  report,  the 
action  of  one  of  the  clubs  in  taking  charge 
of  the  holiday  party,  which  they  conduct- 
ed with  enthusiasm  and  no  little  skill.  In 
this,  as  well  as  in  the  girls  work,  the  best 
work  is  beneath  the  surface  and  consists 
of  the  personal  influence  exerted  upon  in- 
dividuals and  recorded  only  in  better 
habits  and  stronger  characters. 

At  the  close  of  the  regular  season  this 
year,  the  opportunity  was  given  the  mem- 
bers of  the  hoys  clubs  to  avail  themselves 
of  a special  summer  membership,  includ- 
ing outdoor  activities  and  one  night  a 
week  at  the  building.  Quite  a number 
have  already  availed  themselves  of  this 
opportunity  and  the  present  attendance  is 
averaging  over  25  each  week.  This  will 
serve  to  hold  the  boys  together  during 
the  summer  months  and  help  in  the  work 
of  the  coming  season. 

Another  important  feature  of  our  boys 
work  is  that  of  the  Boy  Scouts  under  the 
leadership  of  Mr.  Kenneth  Weed  as  Scout- 
master, with  Messrs.  Colba  Gucker  and 
Dwight  C.  DeWeese,  Assistant  Scoutmas- 
ters. There  are  26  hoys  enrolled  in  the 
troop,  the  limit  of  membership  in  a troop 
being  32.  When  this  limit  is  reached,  we 
shall  have  two  excellent  leaders  ready  to 
take  charge  of  one  or  more  additional 
troops.  Our  troop  has  6 first  class  and  8 
second  class  scouts,  leaving  but  8 tender- 
foot scouts,  an  excellent  proportion.  The 
troop  has  followed  the  usual  program  of 
scouting  activities,  and  has  also  partici- 
pated with  others  in  various  acts  of  civic 
and  church  service.  The  hoys  did  their 
share  with  other  scouts  in  the  inspection 
work  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce’s 
Clean  Up  Week,  and,  with  members  from 
Troop  1,  constituted  the  Guard  of  Honor 
for  the  Veterans  at  our  Memorial  Day 
services.  Among  other  social  activities 
should  be  mentioned  the  very  successful 
play,  “When  Mother  Came  to  Camp,” 
written  by  Elmer  Way,  a member  of  the 
troop  and  presented  by  the  boys.  The 
proceeds  from  this  play  made  a substan- 


tial  addition  to  the  troop  fund  for  the  pur- 
chase of  tents  and  other  camping  equip- 
ment. Excellent  reports  come  from  many 
of  the  parents  as  to  the  good  ellect  of  the 
scouting  discipline  upon  their  boys,  and 
their  interest  is  well  illustrated  by  the 
excellent  attendance  record  upon  meet- 
ings for  the  last  quarter,  75%  with  perfect 
attendance  and  12%  with  excused  ab- 
sences. The  scouts  are  under  the  general 
supervision  of  the  Troop  Committee,  con- 
sisting of  Mr.  Wesley  M.  Angle,  chair- 
man, and  Messrs.  J.  Allen  Farley,  S.  P. 
Moulthrop,  W.  A.  McKinney  and  H.  W. 
Gates. 

USE  OF  INSTITUTE  BY  ADULTS. 
Under  this  general  head  may  be  grouped 
a number  of  items,  such  as  Resident  Af- 
fairs, use  of  the  Social  Rooms,  the 
Wednesday  Evening  Suppers  and  Study 
Groups,  etc. 

RESIDENTS.  The  demand  for  dormi- 
tories has  been  exceedingly  good  during 
almost  the  entire  season,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a brief  period  at  the  very  end, 
when  removals  on  account  of  marriages 
and  changes  of  occupation  left  us  with  a 
number  of  vacancies  for  a time.  It  has 
been  usual  for  us  to  have  from  six  to 
eight  vacancies  during  most  of  the  sum- 
mer, but  this  year  our  rooms  were  occu- 
pied during  the  entire  time.  Our  income 
from  this  source  for  the  year  is  $12,401.69, 
an  increase  of  $600  over  our  budget  esti- 
mate. 

The  year  has  been  comparatively  free 
from  disagreeable  incidents  connected 
with  discipline  and  there  has  been  a good 
spirit  of  harmony  among  the  residents  as 
a whole.  A feature  which  has  undoubted- 
ly contributed  toward  this  end  was  the 
Monday  evening  residents’  supper,  which 
helped  to  bring  the  men  together  and 
promote  acquaintance  and  good  feeling. 
The  total  net  cost  of  these  suppers  for  the 
year  was  $28.47,  a good  investment  when 
the  advantages  are  considered.  With 
plans  that  are  now  in  sight,  we  believe 
that  this  feature  can  be  made  entirely  self- 
supporting  another  year.  Thanks  are  due 
to  Misses  Diemer,  Borchard,  Wahl  and 
Cranshaw  especially,  as  well  as  to  several 


olhers  who  assisted  in  serving  and  so 
helped  to  make  the  plan  possible. 

USE  OF  THE  SOCIAL  ROOMS.  It  ap- 
pears irom  our  records  that  the  rooms  of 
the  Institute  have  been  used  this  year  for 
a total  of  1,769  meetings  or  classes.  This 
number  is  divided  as  follows:  Social 
gatherings — Glass  socials,  22;  parties,  30; 
plays  and  rehearsals,  31 ; dancing  classes, 
29;  Wednesday  evening  suppers,  20;  a 
total  of  132  social  gatherings.  Club  meet- 
ings, partly  educational : Girls’  club,  210; 
boys’  clubs,  150;  Boy  Scouts,  65;  Camp 
Eire  Girls,  20;  a total  of  460.  Religious 
and  educational : Brick  Church  organiza- 
tions, 97 ; Wednesday  evening  study 
groups,  62;  summer  school  classes,  234; 
music  lessons,  624;  day  school  classes, 
150;  outside  organizations,  25;  a total  of 
868.  This  total  does  not  include  many 
meetings  of  an  informal  character  which 
cannot  be  recorded,  but  which  would  un- 
doubtedly increase  the  grand  total  by  an- 
other hundred.  This  is  an  average  of 
more  than  three  meetings  or  classes  per 
day  for  the  entire  year. 

Our  income  from  the  rental  of  rooms 
for  these  purposes  has  been  $648.25,  an 
increase  of  nearly  $200  over  our  estimate, 
this  gain  being  largely  due  to  the  rental 
of  class  rooms  to  the  Board  of  Education, 
which  was  not  anticipated  at  the  time 
when  the  budget  was  made  up. 

THE  WEDNESDAY  EVENING  SUP- 
PERS AND  STUDY  GROUPS  were  very 
successful  this  year,  thanks  to  the  efforts 
of  the  committee,  headed  by  Mrs.  Fred.  K. 
Thompson,  and  the  many  ladies  who  as- 
sisted in  planning  the  menus  and  serving 
them.  Acknowledgment  of  their  services 
was  made  in  the  May  number  of  Brick 
Church  Life,  where  may  also  he  found  a 
full  account  of  the  work  done  by  the 
seven  classes.  The  net  cost  to  the  Insti- 
tute for  these  suppers  was  $27.35,  as 
against  $51.89  for  last  year. 

THE  LIBRARY.  We  have  continued 
this  year  the  station  of  the  Rochester  Pub- 
lic Library,  issuing  books  to  both  chil- 
dren and  adults.  The  total  circulation 
from  this  station  was  1,869  volumes.  This 
feature  has  been  of  value  and  if  we  had 


a little  more  means  might  be  made  a much 
larger  item  of  our  work. 

THE  SAVINGS  BANK.  Our  branch  of 
the  Penny  Provident  Fund  has  not  been 
jsed  so  largely  as  in  previous  years.  The 
opening  of  the  Postal  Savings  deposits 
has  somewhat  reduced  the  necessity  for 
this  service,  but  we  still  feel  it  to  be 
worth  while  pushing,  as  everything  that 
can  be  done  to  increase  the  habit  of 
thrift  is  of  value.  The  total  amount  of 
deposits  for  the  year  was  $41.35,  which, 
added  to  the  amount  on  hand,  $14.95, 
makes  a total  of  $56.30.  We  shall  try  to 
devise  plans  for  increasing  the  usefulness 
of  this  bank  another  year. 

MEMBERSHIPS.  The  total  number  of 
general  memberships  issued  during  the 
year  is  614,  as  compared  with  720  last 
year.  The  decrease  is  mostly  accounted 
for  by  the  very  large  decrease  in  mem- 
berships of  women  and  girls,  which  is 
only  partly  offset  by  a material  increase 
in  the  boys’  department.  Also  many  who 
have  hitherto  taken  the  one  dollar  mem- 
berships have  made  contributions  and 
are  included  in  the  list  of  contributors. 
The  figures  are  given  with  other  statistics 
at  the  close  of  the  report,  where  are  also 
included  the  boys’  and  girls’  club  mem- 
berships. 

It  remains  only  to  speak  of  our  physical 
work  in  general,  without  repeating  what 
has  already  been  said  of  the  hoys’  work 
and  boys’  clubs. 

The  number  of  gymnasium  tickets  is- 
sued to  men  this  year  was  27,  as  against 
40  for  the  preceding  year,  the  loss  being 
due  to  the  failure  of  the  young  men’s 
business  class  to  materialize  as  largely 
as  a year  ago.  The  number  of  swimming 
tickets  is  about  the  same,  54  and  56.  Inas- 
much as  Miss  Stoll  found  it  impossible 
to  conduct  the  women’s  gymnasium  class 
and  as  the  demand  seemed  very  small,  it 
was  decided  not  to  attempt  a class  this 
year,  with  the  exception  of  a small  special 
class  conducted  by  Miss  Stoll  on  a com- 
mission basis  for  a few  weeks.  We  be- 
lieve that  a good  class  for  recreational 
work  among  the  girls  can  be  worked  up 
for  another  season.  The  number  of  gen- 


j 

/ 

< 

eral  swimming  tickets  issued  to  women 
and  girls  shows  a decided  decrease,  87, 
as  against  163  last  year.  This  is  partly 
due  to  the  same  causes  that  have  operated 
to  decrease  the  swimming  lessons  taken 
by  women  and  girls. 

SWIMMING  LESSONS.  This  feature, 
which  has  been  so  important  and  valuable 
an  item  in  our  work  has  fallen  off  very 
greatly  this  year,  the  total  number  of  les- 
sons given  being  but  1,377,  as  against 
2,404  for  last  year.  The  decrease  is  in 
the  lessons  to  women  and  girls,  846,  as 
compared  with  1,932  last  season.  59  more 
lessons  were  given  to  men  and  boys  than 
last  year,  531  as  against  472. 

Various  reasons  have  been  assigned  for 
this  decrease,  among  them  the  counter 
attractions  and  opportunities  at  the  Y.  W. 
C.  A.  and  the  public  schools.  General 
business  conditions  have  undoubtedly 
had  some  effect,  though  not  much.  Un- 
doubtedly the  largest  factor  has  been  the 
excessive  craze  for  dancing,  which  has 
occupied  the  attention  of  people  to  an 
unprecedented  extent.  Another  factor  has 
been  the  circulation  of  reports  adverse 
to  the  sanitary  condition  of  our  pool  as 
well  as  others.  Barring  a single  accident, 
which  was  immediately  remedied  and 
which  had  not  the  slightest  effect  upon 
the  condition  of  the  pool  a few  hours 
later,  there  has  not  been  the  slightest 
ground  for  such  criticisms,  so  far  as  our 
pool  is  concerned.  With  our  filtration 
system,  which  has  been  in  operation  ever 
since  early  fall,  we  do  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  we  have  a swimming  pool  the  equal 
of  any  in  the  country  for  cleanliness  and 
purity.  With  the  installation  of  the 
chlorine  disinfecting  device,  which  has 
finally  been  perfected  and  which  we  shall 
soon  have  in  operation,  this  condition 
will  be  made  better  still.  It  is  a perfectly 
safe  statement  to  make  that  wre  have  not 
the  slightest  grounds  for  apology  regard- 
ing the  sanitary  nature  of  our  pool.  We 
should  give  all  possible  publicity  to  this 
fact  and  as  soon  as  the  chlorine  device 
is  in  working  order  we  should  have 
chemical  tests  made  and  publish  them  at 
frequent  intervals. 


~ Vi 


105648486 


The  arrangements  for  the  supervision 
of  the  gymnasium  and  pool  next  year,  to 
which  reference  has  already  been  made, 
should  remove  every  other  possible  objec- 
tion. It  is  true  that  with  our  existing 
arrangements  it  has  not  always  been  easy 
to  maintain  constant  supervision  of  the 
pool  at  all  times  when  in  use.  The 
division  of  this  responsibility  among 
three  competent  persons  should  make 
adequate  supervision  entirely  possible 
without  requiring  of  any  one  man  an  un- 
reasonable period  of  continuous  service 
in  an  atmosphere  necessarily  trying.  We 
also  hope  to  retain  the  services  of  Mr. 
Wood  as  swimming  instructor,  in  which 
capacity  he  has  given  such  universal 
satisfaction. 

THE  BOWLING  ALLEYS  AND  BIL- 
LIARD ROOM  have  been  popular  this 
year.  The  net  income  from  bowling  has 
been  $144.95,  about  $20  more  than  last 
year,  and  that  from  billiards  $451.05,  a 
gain  of  $135  over  last  year. 

RESIGNATION  OF  MRS.  CRANSHAW. 
Mrs.  Cranshaw,  who  has  been  the  house- 
keeper of  the  Institute  since  the  opening 
of  the  new  building  and  who  was  con- 
nected with  the  former  Institute  work 
for  many  years  in  the  same  capacity,  has 
been  obliged,  by  reason  of  failing  health, 
to  give  up  her  work  here  and  has  pre- 
sented her  resignation  to  the  House  Com- 
mittee. She  has  rendered  excellent  service 
during  a long  term  of  years  and  will  carry 
with  her  the  best  wishes  of  all.  A suc- 
cessor will  soon  be  appointed  to  take  her 
place. 

GENERAL  STATISTICS.  Some  figures 
will  he  of  interest  by  way  of  general  sum- 
mary: 

General  memberships:  Men,  287  ; boys, 
149;  women,  161 ; girls,  17;  total  614.  Club 
memberships:  Boys,  143;  girls,  154;  total 
297. 

Contributors:  271;  amount  subscribed 
$3,639.84,  of  which  all  but  $27.60  was  paid 
at  the  expiration  of  the  fiscal  year. 

Gymnasium  tickets:  Men,  27;  boys, 
59;  women,  9;  total  95. 


Gymnasium  attendance:  Men,  134; 
boys’  classes,  1,421;  athletic  meets,  893; 
boys’  club  classes,  2,656 ; women,  90;  girls’ 
club,  810;  total  6,004. 

Swimming  tickets:  Men,  54;  boys,  81; 
women,  71;  girls,  16;  total  222. 

Swimming  pool  attendance:  Men, 
3,138;  boys,  8,390;  women,  2,669;  girls, 
457;  total  14,654.  Swiming  lessons:  Men 
and  boys,  264  class  and  267  private  les- 
sons; women  and  girls,  441  class  and  405 
private  lessons;  total  1,377  lessons  of  both 
kinds. 

This  gives  us  a total  of  917  different 
persons  enrolled  in  the  various  physical 
activities  during  the  year,  with  a total  at- 
tendance of  about  6,000  in  the  gymnasium 
and  16,000  in  the  swimming  pool. 

These  figures  present  a rather  imposing 
total,  but  after  all  the  best  part  of  any 
such  work  as  this  is  recorded  not  in 
totals  and  figures  but  in  the  feelings  of 
satisfaction  shared  by  those  who  have 
served  and  the  benefits  accruing  to  those 
who  are  served  thereby.  To  all  who 
have  thus  co-operated  in  making  the 
year’s  work  possible,  some  by  gifts  of 
money,  others  by  still  more  precious 
gifts  of  time  and  energy,  we  give  grateful 
appreciation,  knowing  full  well  that  the 
consciousness  of  a good  work  well  done 
will  outweigh  any  spoken  words  of  praise 
or  thanks.  Nor  should  we  omit  a word 
of  appreciation  of  the  services  of  those 
who,  while  acting  as  employed  workers, 
have  none  the  less  made  contributions  of 
loyal  and  interested  service  that  have 
greatly  added  to  the  efficiency  of  our 
work  as  a whole.  I have  already  re- 
ferred to  the  splendid  work  of  Mr.  Mc- 
Kinney with  the  boys,  and  to  the  skill  of 
Mr.  Wood  as  a teacher  of  swimming.  I 
wish  to  add  a further  word  in  apprecia- 
tion of  the  excellent  work  of  Miss  Dieiner 
and  Miss  Borchard  in  the  office  and  in 
l he  discharge  of  duties  that  call  for 
patience,  tact  and  good  judgment. 

It  has  been  a good  year,  and  we  are 
grateful  to  Almighty  God  for  the  oppor- 
tunities of  usefulness  it  has  brought. 


\ 


f 


